Sri Lanka: The United National Party (UNP), including organizational structure, membership and differences between local and national branches; election process for UNP committees at the local level (2004-November 2014)

1. Background and Context

According to the BTI Index [1], the "biggest obstacle" to democracy in Sri Lanka is the absence of a strong opposition to the UPFA (Bertelsmann Stiftung 2014, 10). The UNP is the main opposition party to the governing United People's Freedom Alliance (UPFA) in Sri Lanka (ibid., 10-11; Freedom House 2014). Freedom House reports that in the January 2010 presidential election, the UNP won 60 seats out of a total of 225 seats, compared with the majority UPFA's 144 seats (Freedom House 2014).

The Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) is the principal party in the UPFA (ibid., 11). The Political Handbook of the World (PHW) for 2014 indicates that the UPFA came into power in 2004 with Mahinda Rajapaksa [Rajapakse] of the SLFP elected as prime minister (PHW 2014, 1348). The same source notes that Rajapaksa was then elected as president in 2005 (ibid.). According to the US Department of State's Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2013, Rajapaksa was re-elected as president in 2010 for a six-year term (27 Feb. 2014, 1).

Sources report that the UNP was founded in 1946 (PHW 2014, 1354; FES Nov. 2008, 26). A 2008 research report on internal party democracy in major Sri Lankan political parties produced by Friedrich Ebert Stiftung (FES), a non-profit German foundation "committed to the advancement of public policy issues" with activities in more than 100 countries (FES n.d.), states that the UNP began as a "conglomeration of various political groups," including the Ceylon National Congress, Sinhala Maha Sabha, All Ceylon Muslim League, Moors Association, and some Tamil political leaders (ibid. Nov. 2008, 26). According to PHW 2014, the UNP led the opposition coalition United National Front (UNF), which ran in the 2010 election (PHW 2014, 1354).

PHW 2014 indicates that since Sri Lanka's first parliamentary election in 1947 following independence, "political power has oscillated between the moderate and generally pro-Western United National Party (UNP) and the ... SLFP," which has emphasized Buddhism and "democratic socialism" (ibid.). The 2008 FES report similarly indicates that the UNP and SLFP have "successively held power in Sri Lanka since independence in 1948" (FES Nov. 2008, 6).

Sources describe the UNP as a "moderate" and "democratic socialist" party (PHW 2014, 1354), or as a "conservative" party that has adopted a "moderate" stance on communal issues, and that is largely supported by the Sinhalese (Sagar 2009, 551). According to the 2014 BTI Index, both the SLFP and UNP are "dominated" by Sinhalese Buddhists (Bertelsmann Stiftung 2014, 11).

Sources report that the UNP draws its support mainly from urban populations (De Votta 2010, 123; Shastri 2004, 241), in the south and west of the island (ibid.). According to the website of the UNP, the party headquarters is located in the city of Pitakotte [Pita Kotte], near Colombo (UNP n.d.).

Sources state that the UNP has been beset by internal divisions between party factions (Press Trust of India 22 Sept. 2014; EIU 9 Oct. 2013). Sources also note that party members have expressed dissatisfaction with the continuing leadership of the UNP by Ranil Wickremesinghe (ibid.; PHW 2014, 1354). PHW 2014 reports that numerous UNP members defected to the UPFA between 2006 and 2008, including a mass defection of approximately 500 UNP members to the SLFP in 2008 (ibid.). Other sources report that the ruling party has "encouraged" defections of opposition members (Bertelsmann Stiftung 2014, 11; Freedom House 2014).

In a 2013 report titled Sri Lanka's Assault on Dissent, Amnesty International (AI) indicates that members of opposition parties like the UNP have been "attacked for holding opposing views" (Apr. 2013, 36). The 2014 BTI Index states that "gangs" linked to "individual politicians" intimidate voters and that "opposition politicians participate in politics at personal risk" (Bertelsmann Stiftung 2014, 7). Sources report that harassment of opposition politicians continues to occur (Freedom House 2014; Professor 13 Nov. 2014).

In correspondence with the Research Directorate, a representative of the Centre for Policy Alternatives (CPA), a Sri Lankan non-profit public policy research and advocacy group (n.d.), indicated that according to statistics from the CPA's Centre for Monitoring Election Violence (CMEV), which monitors elections, the UPFA was responsible for 237 incidents of violence against the UNP during the 2010 Presidential elections, and 69 incidents during the general elections of 2010 (11 Nov. 2014). According to Freedom House, more than 1,000 incidents of violence, including 4 deaths, were reported prior to the 2010 presidential elections (Freedom House 2014). Freedom House also notes that provincial elections in 2013 were reportedly marked by "violence and intimidation," for the most part by "military and pro-government forces" (ibid.).

2. UNP Leadership

Sources report that the following members occupy national leadership positions in the UNP:

Party Leader: Ranil Wickremesinghe (EIU 9 Oct. 2013; PHW 2014, 1354), a former Prime Minister (ibid);

Deputy Leader: Sajith Premadasa (Wijeya Newspapers 24 Sept. 2014);

Assistant Leader: Ravi Karunanayake (ibid.);

Chair: Rukman Senanayake (PHW 2014, 1354);

General-Secretary: Tissa Attanayake (ibid.; PTI 22 Sept. 2014), who resigned from the post in September 2014 (ibid.); and

Treasurer: Eran Wickremaratne (Wijeya Newspapers 24 Sept. 2014).

3. National and Local Party Structures

The 2008 FES report provides detailed information on the UNP organizational structure; the relevant section is attached to this Response (FES Nov. 2008, 26-31). The upper structure of the party is made of the Convention, the National Executive Committee and the Working Committee (ibid., 28-29). The local structure mainly includes the District Balamandalaya, the Electorate Balamandalaya (or Kottasha Balamandalaya) and the branches (ibid., 28). Office bearers at the District Balamandalaya are appointed by the Working Committee, but the party's constitution gives the party leader total authority to appoint and replace any of them (ibid., 28, 30).

According to the 2008 FES report, the chairman, the secretary and the treasurer at the Electorate Balamandalaya level are appointed by the Working Committee or by the party leader (ibid., 28, 31). However, the CPA representative said there are no elections at the local level and that "[i]n practice, ... organizers [the terms used by the CPA representative to refer to a leader of an electorate] are appointed by the national leadership, irrespective of whether that individual is from that particular electorate or not" (CPA 11 Nov. 2014, 3).

Electorates are made of several branches at the ward level, where each branch covers a few election booths (ibid.). Party members in a village or ward may form gatherings of at least 25 members to form a branch (FES Nov. 2008, 28). According to a chapter on the UNP by Amita Shastri, a professor in the Department of Political Science at San Francisco State University (SFSU n.d.) [2], in the 2004 book Political Parties of South Asia, each branch has a committee of eight officers; these officers become delegates at the electorate level (Shastri 2004, 250). The CPA representative stated that there is no institutionalized election process to appoint leaders of branches, since leaders at the electorate level have "the discretion to select village level leadership to consolidate [their] power [and] authority within the electorate" (CPA 11 Nov. 2014, 3). He explained that the way that branches "form and function are extremely informal and dependent on [leaders at the electorate level]," who "create his own party structure within the electorate using the existing support base" (ibid.). Similarly, Shastri writes that party organizers at the electorate level can "set up" local branches (2004, 251). The CPA representative said that "usually, when party organisers [at the electorate level] make appointments, they tap into the individuals who are connected to the networks through which patronage benefits are distributed among villages;" these individuals then set up branches (11 Nov. 2014, 3). Similarly, in correspondence with the Research Directorate, a professor of political science at Nebraska Wesleyan University [3] indicated that the local branches of political parties such as the UNP and UPFA "often function around the personality of the local leader" whose following and organization is a function of the local leader's dynamism and capacity to give patronage (13 Nov. 2014, 3). Shastri indicated that "in certain circumstances," the party leader can appoint or remove people holding office in branches (2004, 251).

4. Membership

According to the 2008 FES report, any person over the age of 15 may obtain membership of the UNP, and "should register in a branch at the electorate level" (FES Nov. 2008, 28). According to Shastri, the only requirement to become a party member is to purchase a "membership token" (Shastri 2004, 251). She explained that such a token gives the individual membership to the party for a year (ibid.). The 2008 FES report similarly indicates that party membership lapses after 12 months if not renewed (Nov. 2008, 31). Shastri also writes that tokens are purchased from local level party officials who often sell them "house to house" (Shastri 2004, 251).

Sources report that there are no differences in types or levels of membership in the UNP (CPA 11 Nov. 2014, 3; Professor 13 Nov. 2014, 3). There are also UNP-affiliated trade unions, youth organizations, and women's organizations (ibid.; FES Nov. 2008, 26-27, 31). According to the Professor, membership in the UNP trade union (Jatika Sevaka Sangamaya) is considered membership to the party (Professor 13 Nov. 2014, 3). He also added that the "associates" who "surround a powerful politician probably do not have any official membership in the party" (ibid.). According to the 2008 FES report, membership "does not appear to be a precondition for holding office in the party" (Nov. 2008, 31).

According to Shastri's 2004 paper,

membership of the party is hard to determine and fluctuates widely over time, depending on the political conjuncture. As an open mass party, the UNP's support typically rises when the stock of an opposition government is low, and drops likewise when the party itself is faced with unpopularity in power. According to the party sources, the UNP had about 1.2 million registered members in the lead-up to the 1999-2000 elections, a figure which seems to be inflated in view of the fact that the party does not have an accurate record of its membership. (Shastri 2004, 251)

Shastri adds that "the penetration of society by the party has been high (leaving aside the northeast) [but] how high is difficult to say given the uncertain membership figures" (ibid.). More recent figures on party membership could not be found among the sources consulted within the time constraints of this Response.

The CPA representative indicated that often, parties like the UNP and SLFP launch recruitment drives before elections; he said that these recruitment campaigns are generally spearheaded by electorate-level organizers in order to "impress" higher party officials or secure their candidacy in the upcoming election (CPA 11 Nov. 2014, 3).

According to Shastri, as of 2004, "the connection between electorate level organizations and the membership is a weak one, and typically not related to ideological or programmatic issues" (Shastri 2004, 251). Similarly, the CPA representative said that members are generally unaware of the decisions made by the party leadership, since communication is "exclusively top-down" (CPA 11 Nov. 2014, 3).

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim for refugee protection. Please find below the list of sources consulted in researching this Information Request.

Notes

[1] The Bertelsmann Stiftung Transformation Index (BTI) analyzes the quality of democracy and political management in 128 countries (Bertelsmann Stiftung n.d.a). The BTI is published by Bertelsmann Stiftung, a German "private operating foundation" founded by Reinhard Mohn that works to effect "social change" and is committed to the values of "freedom, competition, solidarity and goodwill" (Bertelsmann Stiftung n.d.b).

[2] Amita Shastri is a professor in the Department of Political Science at San Francisco State University (SFSU n.d.). Her research and teaching interests include "democracy and democratization, ethnicity and nationalism, and political economy of development," especially in South Asia and Sri Lanka (ibid.).

[3] The Professor's research interests focus on comparative politics in South Asia, and particularly in Sri Lanka.

References

Amnesty International (AI). April 2013. Sri Lanka's Assault on Dissent. (ASA 37/003/2013) [Accessed 29 Oct. 2014]

Bertelsmann Stiftung. 2014. Bertelsmann Stiftung's Transformation Index (BTI). Sri Lanka Country Report. [Accessed 28 Oct. 2014]

_____. N.d.a. "Transformation Index BTI." [Accessed 14 Nov. 2014]

_____. N.d.b. "Encouraging Social Change." [Accessed 18 Nov. 2014]

Centre for Policy Alternatives (CPA). 11 November 2014. Correspondence from a representative to the Research Directorate.

_____. N.d. "Welcome to the Centre for Policy Alternatives." [Accessed 14 Nov. 2014]

DeVotta, Neil. 2010. "Politics and Governance in Post-Independence Sri Lanka." In Routledge Handbook of South Asian Politics: India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Nepal. Edited by Paul R. Brass. New York: Routledge.

Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU). 9 October 2013. "Sri Lanka Politics: Quick View - Opposition in Disarray." (Factiva)

Freedom House. 2014. "Sri Lanka." Freedom in the World 2014. [Accessed 14 Nov. 2014]

Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung (FES). November 2008. Preliminary Research Report on Inner Party Democracy. [Accessed 28 Oct. 2014]

_____.N.d. "About Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung/FES." [Accessed 14 Nov. 2014]

Political Handbook of the World (PHW). 2014. "Sri Lanka." Edited by Tom Lansdorf. Washington, DC: CQ Press.

Political Parties of the World. 2009. 7th ed. "Sri Lanka." Edited by D.J. Sagar. London: John Harper Publishing.

Press Trust of India (PTI). 22 September 2014. "Sri Lanka Main Opposition Heading for Crisis." (Factiva)

Professor of political science, Nebraska Wesleyan University. 13 November 2014. Correspondence with the Research Directorate.

Sagar, D.J. 2009. "Sri Lanka." Political Parties of the World. John Harper Publishing: London.

San Francisco State University (SFSU). N.d. "Amita Shastri." [Accessed 14 Nov. 2014]

Shastri, Amita. 2004. "The United National Party of Sri Lanka: Reproducing Hegemony." In Political Parties of South Asia. Edited by Subrata K. Mitra, Mike Enskat and Clemens Spiess. Westport, Connecticut, London: Praeger.

United National Party (UNP). N.d. "Contact Us." [Accessed 17 Nov. 2014]

United States (US). 27 February 2014. "Sri Lanka." Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2013. [Accessed 8 Oct. 2014]

Wijeya Newspapers. 24 September 2014. Dharisha Bastians. "UNP Unshackles Ultimately." (Factiva)

Additional Sources Consulted

Oral sources: Attempts to contact the following were unsuccessful within the time constraints of this Response: Sri Lanka Senior Researcher for the International Crisis Group; Law and Society Trust; National Peace Council; Transparency International Sri Lanka.

The following were unable to provide information within the time constraints of this Response: Asian Human Rights Commission; Campaign for Free and Fair Elections.

The following were unable to provide information for this Response: Asia Foundation; professor of political science, San Francisco State University.

Internet sites, including: Asian Network for Free Elections; Asian Tribune; BBC; Campaign for Free and Fair Elections; Centre for Human Rights Research Sri Lanka; ecoi.net; International Crisis Group; Law and Society Trust; National Peace Council; Sri Lanka Mirror; Tissa Attanayake; Transparency International Sri Lanka; United Kingdom - Home Office; United National Party; United National Party of the United Kingdom; UN - Integrated Regional Information Networks, Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Refworld, ReliefWeb.

Attachments

1. Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung (FES). November 2008. "3. United National Party." Preliminary Research Report on Inner Party Democracy. [Accessed 28 Oct. 2014]